On Wednesday Dallas City Council member Sheffie Kadane told his colleagues that it's time to flush fluoride from the city's water supply. On Friday the 106-year-old Dallas County Dental Society, with ties to the American Dental Association, sent a statement lambasting that proposal.

The group says it "strongly supports maintaining the current levels of water fluoridation in the city as the most safe, effective, and financially sound way to prevent tooth decay in our community. Community water fluoridation (CWF) has been used in the United States for nearly 70 years, and it is one of the most extensively studied public health measures. Strong scientific evidence stemming from decades of research demonstrates the benefits of fluoride, most notably that it is shown to reduce dental decay by 20 to 40 percent in children and adults."

Kadane's proclamation had nothing to do with the risks or benefits of fluoride, which has been in Dallas' water since 1966, and everything to do with the pinching of pennies at a time when the city needs every spare cent it can find.

"We don’t need it, and we just saved a million dollars that we can use immediately for something else like libraries, rec centers," said Kadane. His comments echoed those of Chantel Arashvand of the group NO Fluoride Dallas 2014, who asked the council to "put aside the risks related [with flouride] and focus on the amount of money the city spends" -- specifically, $2,048,287.50, which is what the city's paying for a three-year deal with an Ennis-based company to add hydrofluosilicic acid to the water supply. The anti-fluoride faction has been lobbying the council for months to spike fluoride, and the group finally found an ally in Kadane. Scott Griggs is also in favor of studying need, efficacy and expense.

The Dallas County Dental Society says that's not necessary.

"Dallas County Dental Society encourages members of the Dallas City Council and the public to research and understand the peer-reviewed scientific data that addresses CWF before reaching any conclusions," says Friday's statement. "We believe the claims and tactics used by fluoride opponents are not founded in research, but fear, and that all decisions affecting the health of our city should be based on evidence."